Sir Lucian Grainge is going to have to stay on the good side of powerful French businessman Vincent Bolloré.
The Paris-based mogul has today (October 10) increased his stake in Universal Music Group parent Vivendi to over 20%.
As a result, Bolloré lays claim to a 20.4% stake in Universal Music Group parent Vivendi, up from 15% previously.
This increased shareholding will bring with it 29% of voting rights in Vivendi from April next year, when a new French law begins granting double voting rights for long-term shareholders.
That will secure Bolloré huge sway when making decisions that affect the future of UMG and sister companies including Canal+.
Bolloré’s newly-increased stakeholding in Vivendi was achieved through a mix of transactions, including cash unwinding, a share loan agreement and the acquisition of call options.
The Bolloré Group said in a statement: “These operations reflect the confidence the Bolloré Group has in Vivendi’s potential for development and its willingness to remain as reference shareholder of the company in the
long term.”
Bolloré spent €2.84bn acquiring additional shares in Vivendi in Spring last year.
Universal is an extremely important subsidiary at the Paris company: in recorded music and music publishing alone (not including its film production efforts with the likes of AMY), UMG contributed 48% of Vivendi’s revenue in 2015.
Bolloré was appointed Vivendi’s chairman in 2014.
His son, Yannick Bolloré, was appointed on the Vivendi board earlier this year.
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